This application relates to a family of wire-harness retainer clip holders that are easily adjusted to accommodate any desired location for holding a retainer clip on a wire harness.
Electrical wires for use on a vehicle are often bundled together into a group typically known as a wire harness. With the increasing electronic applications on a vehicle, the number and complexity of the wire harnesses has increased. Wire harnesses extend within the vehicle bodies and are often attached to the vehicle frame. Thus, wire harnesses often twist to correspond to curves on the vehicle frame.
Retainer clips are attached to the wire harness, and include a plug-like member that is to be inserted into a corresponding opening on the vehicle. The vehicle manufacturers specify the location of the retainer clip to the assembler of the wire harness. Typically, there are many retainer clips that must be mounted onto the wire harness, and the assembly and proper positioning of the retainer clips presents a complex assembly challenge. Since the wire harness may twist along its length, the retainer clips may be necessarily attached at several distinct angular orientations and vertical heights such that they are properly positioned for attachment to the vehicle.
Wire harnesses are typically assembled on a jig, which is essentially a board or a pair of boards extending along two perpendicularly oriented planes, and which contain a pattern of holes. There are many assembly fixtures that must be attached to the jig. Various types of fixtures for holding the individual wires and the harnesses are mounted onto the boards. An example of one such fixture is disclosed in co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/189,377. Typically, retainer clip holders are used to hold the retainer clips at the desired location and orientation for attachment to the wire harness. The surface of the jig often becomes crowded, and it has been difficult in some applications to position a retainer clip holder at a location on the board adjacent to the location where a retainer clip must be mounted to the wire harness.
To address this problem, the prior art has typically constructed fixed retainer clip holders for each individual application. The base of the holder is often at a particular location dictated by available space, and the prior art has constructed fixed holders which extend from the base to a holding portion at the desired position where a retainer clip is to be held. A wire harness assembler may have hundreds of different retainer clip holders having holding portions at various vertical, angular and horizontal locations relative to a base of the holder. For example, as the harness twists, the vertical height of the clip location changes and the proper orientation of the clip on the harness may also change. When a wire harness assembler is presented with a new wire harness specification, there are so many retainer clip holders of fixed length, height, angular relationship, etc., that the wire harness assembler typically cannot practically select from the hundreds of holders. With the prior art fixed retainer clip holders, almost any new wire harness specification requires the wire harness manufacturer assembler to manufacture a new type of retainer clip holder. This is undesirable, as it further increases inventory, and also increases the difficulty of selecting the proper retainer clip for any individual application.
One known retainer clip holder allowed for a flipping movement of a holder portion relative to the base through two positions spaced by 90 degrees to present retainer clips at two distinct orientations relative to the base of the holder. This retainer clip holder does not overcome the problems discussed above, as it is not adjustable in a horizontal plane or fully adjustable in a vertical plane, nor is its height adjustable. As such, it has not overcome the problems as discussed above.